In retrospect it's wonderful that so many buildings had the foresight to install fiber optics in their walls. The copper lines originally used are now past their breaking point, having exceeded their limitations. Copper has become woefully inefficient when faced with the current need for lightning-fast data transmission and cyber security.

I tend to think of footwear when someone mentions active wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) for fiber communications. My mind automatically wanders to the differences between active footwear and, say, a dress shoe with a small heel and an adjustable strap.

As with anything that is not familiar to us, it is human nature to think that something mystical, or difficult to understand must be involved in the creation of that which is not familiar and already understood.